


By Your Side

by idra



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alive Vernon Boyd & Erica Reyes, Hurt Stiles, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Other Pack Members make brief appearances, allison is a bad person in this sorry, before season 3b so that didn't happen, before season 4 happened so that doesn't exist, slow recovery from injury
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-05
Updated: 2015-01-05
Packaged: 2018-03-05 11:36:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,535
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3118703
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/idra/pseuds/idra
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Stiles gets paralyzed from the neck down after he follows Derek into the woods and out to the cliffs.  Derek saves him and they grow closer as Stiles heals from his injuries.</p>
            </blockquote>





	By Your Side

**Author's Note:**

> I am horrible at tagging. I've never been a huge fan of warnings before fic, but I'm trying to get better at it. If I missed anything major that anyone feels I should be tagging, just let me know. I'm happy to add tags after the fact as well. 
> 
> This was actually written for the high school bb over on LJ, but I didn't really finish it in time. Or didn't turn it in on time or something. I don't remember why it was never posted, but it's been sitting in my "works not posted" folder for quite a while.

Derek watches from the window as Stiles gets the news that he may recover, but only after months and months of therapy-- possibly years, judging from what the doctor is saying. He lets out a soft sigh and drops down to the ground, walking over to his pack-- Scott's pack. He's got to stop thinking of them as his. He'd given up the pack for their own safety, plus, he knows he sucks as an Alpha. He looks at his packmates and grimaces. "Possibly years of rehab." He glances at Scott who's sitting on the ground with Allison and Lydia. "Scott..."

"Don't," Scott snaps, glaring up at him. "This is your fault! If you hadn't taken him on that fucking ridiculous _quest_ he'd be okay now!" 

"Scott, that's not fair," Lydia interrupts, glancing at Derek. Odd how this fragile human could understand him in ways his own pack doesn't. But she can obviously see or sense the guilt all over him. "No one forces Stiles to do anything he doesn't want to do. Derek told him not to go. He made the decision for himself and Derek's the one who brought him back to civilization!" She gets to her feet and walks over to Derek, taking his hand. "Come on. We're going to see if Sheriff Stilinski will let us in."

Scott scrambles to his feet. "I'm coming with. No way am I letting him be alone with Stiles."

"He won't be alone with him," Erica snaps, taking Derek's other hand. "Stiles' pack will be there." With that, she and Lydia pull Derek into the hospital and up to the third floor.

The sheriff looks up when they step up to the doorway of Stiles' room and raises an eyebrow. "Mr. Hale. Erica, Lydia. To what do we owe this honour?"

Lydia smiles, a little sadly. "We wanted to see Stiles. And considering it's Derek who found him... He wanted to make sure Stiles is okay."

"Dad, it's fine. Please? I told you..."

John looks at his son and sighs. "Fine. I need to check in with my deputies anyhow. I'll be back soon." 

Stiles smiles at him and nods, then looks at his friends-- his packmates. "Hey."

Derek hangs back while the girls all but jump on Stiles' bed, soon joined by Cora and Allison, all leaning in and kissing him. He lets out a small smile when he hears Stiles make a smart ass remark.

"Figures I'd have to be paralyzed from the neck down to get any action."

Scott bites his lip as he steps in, the rest of the pack following, including Peter. Derek nearly snarls at his uncle, but manages to keep his feelings to himself. He knows Peter wants to kill Scott to become the Alpha. He's been trying to find ways to prevent it, but he hasn't had much luck.

"Dude!" Stiles is practically yelling and Derek looks at him surprised. "Yeah, you. Sourwolf. Hello are you alive?" 

"Idiot," Derek replies, but it sounds almost fond, even to his own ears. "What?" 

"Get over here and hug me. I can't feel it, but I want a hug and I'm going to be stuck doing years of rehab so damn it all, I get a hug from anyone and everyone I say I get one from."

Derek frowns as he watches Stiles. He knows the rest of the pack is surrounding them and he should be worried, but he likes Stiles. Genuinely likes the kid and if Stiles wants a hug, who is he to deny an injured-on-his-watch man? He walks over and leans down, giving Stiles an awkward hug, but Stiles' soft chuckle in his ear makes it worth it. "There. Happy?" 

"Not really, but I feel better. I've gotten a hug from the whole pack now, creepy Uncle Peter aside. And dude, I do not want a hug from you so go away!" Stiles glares at Peter. Derek smiles. He's pretty sure Stiles has figured out Peter's intentions towards Scott and he'll have to recruit the kid to help him find a way to stop Peter from trying to hurt Scott. 

Derek licks his lips as he looks down at Stiles. "So... What are you going to do, Stiles?" 

"About what? Rehab? I'm going to do whatever it takes to get me walking again." Stiles grins.

"About school? About... Everything?" Derek frowns. He doesn't know what else Stiles gets up to, but he does kind of wonder how Stiles is going to be a productive member of the pack.

Stiles lets out a rough sigh. "I don't know. The school is wheelchair accessible, by law, thank god. I don't know how I'm going to take care of the house and Dad and..." He trails off and glances around the room. They all know that while Scott and Allison are more or less the Alpha pair-- with a side of Isaac as their third more often than not-- Stiles is the person who keeps the pack together. Not even in a necessarily he-is-their-bond but more of a he-takes-care-of-them-and-feeds-them way.

John steps in the room and eyes the crowd. "I'll hire someone to help around the house, Stiles. It'll be uncomfortable, but..."

"I'll do it," Derek says, even as he's blinking and wondering where the words came from. When everyone looks at him like he's lost his mind, he glances around. "I... I'm the one without a job and I've got nothing else to do. Plus... I..."

John sighs. "Okay, let's all stop pretending I'm an idiot who doesn't know that you are all a werewolf pack and that somehow this-" he gestures to his son lying on the bed "-was just a total freak accident. What did you do to my son, Hale?" 

Derek steps back from the anger in the man's voice and looks around for help, but unsurprisingly, his pack moves behind the Sheriff. "I... I made-"

"No. Fuck this," Stiles says, grunting. He looks at his dad. "Fine, good you know about wolves. Dad, this was my fault. I overheard Derek talking about this plant that may or may not counteract wolfsbane and I followed him when he went looking for it. I'm the moron who wasn't paying attention and I'm the idiot who missed the huge crevice in the canyon. Derek saved my life out there."

Derek blushes when he realizes everyone's looking at him with a sort of reverence he was pretty sure was saved strictly for when Scott did something wonderful, like properly tell the time.

Stiles isn't done though. "Dad, he literally carried me in his arms from the canyon to the hospital! I mean, I know he's a werewolf and super strength and all but that's fifty miles away!" 

John looks at Derek. "Why didn't you use one of the cars? Yours or his?"

"His keys had fallen in the river and I hadn't brought mine. I only told Cora where I was going and that I needed a run." Derek looks down. "I would've taken the Jeep if I'd known how to hotwire it."

Stiles stares at him in awe. "Dude! You basically ran a hundred miles? You are so my hero!" 

Derek snorts at that and looks over at Stiles, a little unnerved by just how in awe Stiles is. "I had to, Stiles. I couldn't leave you out there and I can't hotwire a vehicle."

"In that case, thank you for saving my son's life and if you really want to help out with Stiles, I'd appreciate the help." John holds his hand out to Derek, who shakes it nervously. 

After a while, everyone's gone home to their families, except Derek and the sheriff. Derek licks his lips and looks down. "I should go, I guess."

"No." Stiles himself looks surprised by the vehemence in his voice. "I mean, if you want to, you can, but... Dad's gotta get back to the station and it's almost dinner time and I need to eat, but obviously I can't feed myself and while the nurses are pretty cute, they're also old enough to be my... well, mom and just no. If I can't have Lydia, Allison or Erica feeding me, then I want the person who's going to be doing it the most to do it."

Derek looks over at the sheriff and raises an eyebrow. "I..."

"If you're going to be taking care of him, you may as well start now. Stiles, do you want hospital food or should I see if I can get some real stuff in here?" 

"As long as it's heart healthy," Stiles replies, eyeing his dad. John sighs, looking disappointed. "Dad!" 

"Fine. I'll get myself something heart healthy and you get to eat the same crap and Derek... What do you want?"

Derek starts to say a burger, rare, when Stiles looks at him pleadingly. He sighs a little and smiles at John. "Whatever you order yourself and Stiles."

"Oh come on, Derek!" John groans. "You expect me to believe you don't want a nice, juicy burger?" 

"Nope. I'll have whatever heart healthy stuff you and Stiles will eat." Derek fights back a grin, glancing over at Stiles to see smirk at his dad who rolls his eyes.

John glares at Stiles before he storms out. Stiles laughs and looks over at Derek, the smile leaving his face completely once the door is shut. "Thank you."

"For what? Nearly getting you killed?"

"You didn't. I'm the idiot who decided to follow you." Stiles sighs. "Seriously. You saved my life."

"Right. And by moving you, I'm probably the one that paralyzed you." Derek looks away, moving over to the window that looks out over the parking lot. "Shit. I'm so sorry, Stiles. I could've killed you, carrying you back."

"And I would've died if you hadn't."

"There was another option," Derek snaps, turning back. He starts to snarl more, but the tears streaming down Stiles' face stop him in his tracks. "Oh shit, Stiles." He moves over, not sure why he's so invested in Stiles' well being, but he pulls the younger man into his arms and nuzzles his neck. "I'm sorry, Stiles. I'm so sorry."

"Derek, stop. It wasn't your fault." Stiles nuzzles him back. "The only other option would've been to leave me there and you wouldn't do that. It's not in you to do that to someone." Stiles presses his face to Derek's cheek. "You saved my life."

Derek stiffens at the feel of Stiles' cheek rubbing against his. It's something mates do, not friends. He tries to reason with himself that it's Stiles and he doesn't usually react like the rest of the wolves-- except he does. He's been with them for a couple of years now. He knows most of the protocols. "Stiles..."

Stiles pulls back as much as he's capable of. "Sorry Derek. I just thought..." He shakes his head. "I'm sorry. Look, you can go if you want. You don't need to help me. I can figure this out on my own."

Derek frowns, still holding Stiles upright. "Stiles, I want to help you. Please? Allow me to help you."

Stiles looks away and Derek's heart breaks when he hears the sniffling. "Stiles, please. I... I care about you. I want to help you. I _want_ to be here with you."

"Don't do this because you feel guilty, Derek. You didn't lead me out there. I did that to myself. I'm the idiot who followed you out into the middle of the woods." Stiles continues looking away. 

"Stiles, look at me, please?"

"No. Just put me back down and go."

"Stiles, I'm not leaving you. I told your dad I'd help you."

"Put me the fuck down, Derek!" Stiles turns yelling in Derek's ear.

Derek flinches and lays Stiles down carefully. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry, just go, Derek. I don't need or want your fucking pity."

"It's not pity, Stiles." Derek covers Stiles' hand with his own, even though he knows that Stiles can't feel it. "I care about you. You're my... You're pack. And maybe I'm not the Alpha anymore, but we still belong together... As friends I mean."

"Just go away, Derek."

Derek hangs his head and then Stiles yells at him to leave so he gets up and walks out, stopping in the doorway to look back at him. His heart stutters when he realizes he wants to be with Stiles. Not just as his friend. He sighs and heads out to the waiting room. He's not leaving the hospital. He's going to take care of Stiles whether Stiles wants it or not.

He looks up about fifteen minutes later when Cora sits next to him. "Hey bro." 

"Cora. You should be home, getting some sleep. You have school in the morning."

"I'm fine and I'm worried about you, Der. You cannot take on this guilt from Stiles getting hurt."

"It's my fault. I should've known he'd follow me if he found out why I was going out there." He sighs and lays his head back, staring at the ceiling. "I never should've said anything to anyone and I should've just gone out there by myself."

"Yeah and if you'd been hurt? What would I do then?" 

"You'd be fine. Scott would do his job as Alpha and take care of you."

Cora snorts. "He's not my big brother."

"You would've been fine, Cora. You don't need me. No one does."

"Now you know that's just bullshit, Derek," John says as he sits across from them. Derek looks at him startled. "Don't give me that look. I know you all seem to think I'm blind but I see things. Besides, someone had to change Isaac, Boyd and Erica and Scott hasn't been Alpha long enough." John smiles at Cora. "You, young lady, should be home, in bed."

Cora smiles. "I know, but I'm worried about Der." 

"Well, go to mine and Stiles' house, you can crash in the guest room. I'll be home after the boys and I eat and Derek will keep an eye on Stiles for me."

"He doesn't want me around." Derek frowns at how self-pitying that sounds. He knows he's usually a downer, according to the rest of the pack, but he's not usually quite _that_ obvious about it. 

John snorts. "He wants you around. Look, Stiles had a tendency to overreact even before he got hurt. Now that he's injured and he knows how hard the road ahead is, he's going to lash out but it's our job, Derek, to be there for him even when he uses us as a metaphorical punching bag."

"But I can't..." Derek sighs and buries his face in his hands. 

"What Derek is trying to say is they're mates, or meant to be mates and even if he was still an Alpha, the Alpha mate position takes power over and above. Mom and Dad were like that. Mom was the Alpha, but even she bent to Dad's will. Also, Stiles is our... well, to be slightly weird Pack Mom. He takes care of us, all of us. He makes sure we eat, he makes sure we don't kill each other, even with all our personality clashes. He watches us when we've crashed from the full moon high. He protects us, as much as he's able and Derek? Totally and willingly would be Stiles' slave if Stiles ever said he wanted Derek the same way that Derek wants him. So when Stiles told him to leave, Derek had to do what he said."

Derek glares at her. "I thought Laura was the talker."

"Nope. I got that side of Dad as well." Cora smirks at him, then looks at the sheriff. "Derek loves Stiles, Mr. Stilinski. He pretty much has for a long time."

"How long?" John looks at Derek.

"From the moment I met him," Derek mumbles, "I knew he was my mate. I tried to keep him away from this, from me, but I couldn't. He's stubborn and was so determined to help Scott and then the pack..." He sighs and shakes his head. "The more he helped, the more I fell in love."

"Jesus. So this started when he was sixteen?" John growls at him.

Derek looks up, as impressed with the growl as he is surprised. "I never acted on it, John. I pushed him away as much as possible. I never wanted him to be so involved, not just because he's my mate but my life is fucked up." He drags a hand through his hair and groans. "I love your son, but I will never make a move on him unless he makes the first move."

John rubs his hand over his face. "You're a good man, Derek. You saved his life."

"I had to."

"No, you didn't," John replies, eyebrows closing together.

"Yes, he did. Sheriff, Derek will always feel a biological imperative to take care of his mate, to protect his mate. I know it's disconcerting since Stiles is only eighteen, but I know my brother. He would never have touched Stiles until Stiles had turned eighteen and he would never until Stiles initiates it."

"Okay. You're going to explain to me more on this later. Right now, I have a kid to feed and you're going to help me, Derek."

"I am the last person Stiles wants to see right now, John."

"I don't care. You are going to man up and go in to see him."

Derek looks at Cora who laughs. "Oh my god. You can't say no to his dad either! I forgot about that!" 

"What?" John asks, frowning at them both. Derek looks like he's about to throw up and Cora is all but cackling gleefully. "One of you explain this, please?" 

Cora sobers enough to say, "Because you and Stiles are so close, apparently some of the... impulses that force him to do whatever Stiles says has bled into you."

John laughs when Cora starts cackling again. "In that case, Hale, off your ass and follow me." He heads for Stiles' room and can hear Derek's footsteps behind him. As a result, he's laughing when he heads into Stiles' room. "I heard you ordered him out. Well, if I'm going to be paying him to watch you, he stays, Stiles." John sits down and pulls out three turkey burgers with sweet potato fries. "Derek, you help Stiles eat while I dig in."

Derek frowns, but sits on Stiles' other side, grabbing Stiles' burger and cutting it in half. He holds it up to Stiles' mouth. Stiles scowls at his dad, but takes a bite, chewing slowly as he watches Derek. "Weren't you going home?" he mutters through the mouthful of food. 

"You just told me to get out of the room. You didn't tell me to leave the hospital or go home." Derek looks embarrassed for all of a second until John snorts. "Stiles, I'm sorry I upset you. If you want me to leave, tell me too."

"No, he won't," John interrupts whatever Stiles had opened his mouth to say. "He won't, because whether he likes it or not, he's the only one who can logically help you out. I have to work, Stiles. Your friends have to go to school. Derek... well, he doesn't do much."

"Except brood. He's a champion brooder." Stiles rolls his eyes.

"Well, if that's the case, then he can help you and brood at the same time." John smiles as he takes a big bite of his burger.

Stiles' eyes narrow. "Derek, is he eating turkey?"

Derek looks at him, then sniffs the air and licks his lips. "No."

"Dad!"

John scowls at Derek. "Thanks, traitor." He finishes off the last couple bites and smirks. "One burger isn't going to kill me."

"No, but I will as soon as I get the use of my hands and legs back." Stiles frowns. "Dad!!" 

John sighs. "Fine. I won't eat red meat again for the rest of the week."

"Derek will smell it on you and he'll tell me, right, Derek?" 

"Yes." Derek looks at John apologetically. John sighs and nods. Stiles smirks and turns to Derek.

"Another bite, Der?" 

Derek immediately holds the turkey burger up to Stiles' mouth. Stiles takes another bite, chewing slowly as he watches Derek. Once he swallows, he frowns. "Derek, don't forget to eat your own food."

Derek startles a little. "Oh. Yeah." He pulls his burger out and starts to eat, feeding Stiles in between. After several more bites their food is all gone. Derek looks around, wondering what he's going to do now. 

Stiles looks at him. "Can you get me something to drink?"

Derek nods and gets to his feet. "Soda? Coffee? Water?"

"Tea, please."

Derek looks at the sheriff who shakes his head before he heads out. As he's leaving, he hears Stiles ask what's wrong with Derek. Derek smiles at John's non answer and he keeps going. A few minutes later he brings back two cups of tea and several packets of sugar and some small containers of cream. He sets them all on the little bedside table and raises his eyebrows. "Where's your dad?" 

"Went home. He has to work in the morning." Stiles smiles. "Two sugar packets and two creamers." 

Derek nods and puts them in, lifting the drink to Stiles' mouth. "Take a drink and make sure it's okay."

Stiles drinks a little and smiles. "It's perfect. So, Cora came in."

Derek goes still. "Oh?" he says after several minutes.

"So, mates?"

Derek's face goes red. "I'm going to kill her."

He says it so matter of factly that Stiles laughs. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't... I thought it was just since we've become friends..." Derek sighs. "I thought the feelings were stirring because we've become friends. I don't have that many friends so I thought..."

Stiles looks at him. "Take my hand. I want to reach over and squeeze your hand to make you keep talking and I can't so put your hand in mine so we can at least be touching."

Derek does as he's told and he looks at Stiles, smiling when Stiles' smiles back. "I honestly just thought I was reading too much into having a friend again. But when you got hurt..." Derek takes a deep breath. "When you got hurt, I felt it. Not just a sympathy pain, but I literally felt my arms and legs go completely numb and my vision go black. It was only for a few seconds, but I _felt_ it."

Stiles licks his lips and looks down at their joined hands. "Jesus. So Cora wasn't kidding when she said that you and I are connected on like every level."

"Yeah," Derek mumbles, looking down. "Can we..."

"Date?" Stiles grins when Derek looks up a little startled. "As long as you don't mind feeding your date and wiping your date's ass, yes." 

Derek snorts, laughing a little. "God, Stiles. Really?" 

"Well, I can't exactly do it myself." Stiles grins. "No, I can ask Dad to hire a nurse to take care of all that if you'd rather not be the one taking care of me."

"I'll be there with you. I don't mind doing any of it, in fact I want to do it." Derek rubs his thumb back and forth over Stiles' hand. "Do they still have a catheter in you?"

"Yeah. Until I get some feeling back below my neck. So hey, at least you just have to change the bag I pee in."

Derek laughs and leans in, nuzzling his cheek along Stiles. "Okay. So, we should probably call the nurse for your night time meds?" 

Stiles nods and grins at him. "Also, you're going to have to go to school with me. I can't take notes and Dad's going to talk to the school about figuring out a way for me to take tests."

"Isn't it too soon to go back to school?" 

"I'm not not graduating with my class because of this." Stiles raises an eyebrow. "Do you not want..." He trails off with a sigh.

"I will do whatever you ask of me, Stiles," Derek murmurs. "And I'll happily do it."

"Is this only 'cause of the mate thing?" Stiles tilts his head. "Cora said you were compelled to do what I tell you."

"Yeah. As my mate, I will basically do whatever you want when you want."

Stiles grins. "That has possibilities. So... If I told you to give me the bite?" 

"I... I can't." Derek frowns. "I'm not an alpha anymore."

Stiles chuckles and licks his lips. "Will you kiss me?" 

"Yes." Derek leans in, kissing Stiles softly and he pulls him up into his arms, cradling him close.

Stiles moans into Derek's mouth, wishing he could wrap his own arms around Derek's neck. Derek pulls back, frowning a little. "What? Don't stop," Stiles whines.

"I'm trying to figure out how to make this work..." Derek sits on the bed and puts Stiles' arms around his neck, leaning in and nodding. "Better." He kisses Stiles again, slipping his tongue into Stiles' mouth.

Stiles sucks on his tongue, grunting when he can't hold on to Derek. He pulls back and frowns. "Damn it. This sucks. I want to be able to participate."

Derek presses his cheek to Stiles' neck. "I know, Stiles. We'll get rehab started as soon as we can and try to get feeling back into your upper half first."

Stiles nods. "Are you staying the whole night?" 

"Yeah, I am." Derek shifts and tugs off his jacket, then kicks off his shoes before he scoots Stiles over and climbs into bed with him. He pulls Stiles into his arms and smiles a little. "Here. Does that feel good?" 

"Feels great. Wish I could feel more," Stiles murmurs against Derek's neck. "Derek?"

"Yeah, Stiles?" 

"You know this isn't just you, right? I don't know when, but I fell for you and I fell hard."

Derek smiles and kisses the top of Stiles' head. "I figured as much. The compulsion to do what you say only works if the relationship works both ways."

Stiles chuckles. "Good to know. I'm so tired, Der."

"Sleep, Stiles. I'm not going anywhere."

"I know," Stiles mumbles, rubbing his cheek along Derek's shoulder as he starts to fall asleep.

It's a few days later when Stiles finally gets to go home and he grins at the pack as Derek loads all the equipment into the trunk of his car. Stiles glances over at Derek and smiles a little. "You about done?"

"You have a lot of crap, Stiles. Give me a little time to put it in my way too small car." Derek grins at him.

Isaac jumps and goes over to Derek. "Here. John said I have to drive Stiles' car so it doesn't die, so I brought it with us."

"Dad! Don't you think you should've talked to me about that? That's my baby!" Stiles glares at his dad.

John grins. "Stiles, you won't be able to drive it and I'm sure Derek would much rather drive his Camaro, so you're going to have to let someone drive the Jeep."

"But...."

Isaac smiles at Stiles. "I promise to take very good care of it."

"Her! She's a her!!" Stiles pouts. "Derek, can't you drive the Jeep?"

"If you tell me to," Derek says, reaching over and rubbing his thumb over Stiles' cheek.

Stiles sighs. He loves how close the two of them are and he likes that Derek can't say no to him, but he is trying very hard to not use his power of sway against Derek. "Only if you want to."

Derek leans in and kisses him, wrapping his arms around Stiles. "I'd rather drive my Camaro."

"Fine." Stiles pouts, but lets Derek pick him up and put him in the passenger seat of the Camaro. Isaac finishes loading up Stiles' stuff in the Jeep and they all head back to the Stilinski house. 

Derek carries Stiles up to his bedroom when they get there and curls up next to him, both of them falling asleep. John comes up to check on him, tilting his head. He smiles and snaps a picture before he heads downstairs.

"They're sleeping, curled up together and looking absolutely adorable." John shows the picture to everyone. "Now, from what I understand, having the pack together helps? Why don't the rest of you go curl up in his room? You're all exhausted and I know we've all been worried about him."

Peter cocks an eyebrow when the kids all go up. "Why are you so accepting of this?" 

"Stiles got it from somewhere. Don't you think it makes sense that I'd be a little calm about all of it?" John raises an eyebrow. "I love that kid and he obviously loves Derek and the pack. Okay, loves Derek more, but... I only want Stiles to be happy. Derek makes him happy."

Peter nods. "I know they all call me creepy, but Stiles has been good for Derek. He's brought him back out of his shell. If you have any questions about Derek or the werewolf thing, or pack behaviours, just let me know. You and Mrs. McCall." Peter smiles wickedly.

John frowns. "Now I know why they all call you creepy." 

The door opens and Melissa McCall walks in. She frowns at Peter, then at John. "What is he doing here?" 

"He's part of the pack apparently. Scott's upstairs."

"I figured. I came to check on Stiles." Melissa smiles. "How's he doing?"

"Sleeping with Derek. And the rest of the pack." John smiles back. "Want some coffee?"

Peter smirks at them. "I'll be leaving now. Tell Derek to call if anything happens."

John waves him off, putting his hand on the small of Melissa's back and leading them into the kitchen.

Meanwhile, Stiles wakes up and looks around. He chuckles at the sight of the entire pack-- minus Peter-- curled up around the bed. He turns his head to look at Derek. Derek smiles at him. "It will help. Having the pack around. It'd help more if they were curled up up here on the bed, but..."

"So, I might heal faster if the pack's around a lot?"

"It's possible. If you're going to heal," Derek murmurs. "You could always ask Scott to bite you."

"Would it heal me?" 

"I don't know." Derek frowns. "It could kill you. Hell, the healing could kill you, even if you survived the actual bite."

Stiles sighs. "Better not to risk it. So, you'll be okay to help with all the homework I have stacked up, right?" 

"You answer the questions, I'll write down the answers." Derek smiles.

Stiles smiles. "Help me sit up?"

Derek nods and props Stiles up on several pillows. "I'll go grab your bookbag. I think it's downstairs."

"I'll go get it," Scott murmurs, hopping to his feet. “I gotta get away from them." He gestures to where Allison and Isaac are curled up together.

Stiles nods and a few minutes later, Scott is returning, looking horrified. "Oh my god."

"What? What's wrong?"

"Mom. And your dad. Oh my god."

"What?" Stiles looks horrified. "Please don't tell me..."

"They were making out! Dude, your dad had his hands on my mom's.... oh god, I'm gonna be sick."

Stiles tries not to smile. "Go Dad."

"Stiles!" Scott yelps, shaking his head and waking everyone up.

Stiles laughs. "What dude? We both said two years ago our parents should get married, so we could be brothers for real. Maybe this is it. Maybe this is the chance." 

Scott makes a face. "Well, okay, yeah, but oh my god. Our parents were making out in your kitchen!" 

"So? I think it's good. Dad gets laid, your mom gets laid, they get married and we get to be brothers."

Scott scowls. "Can we not talk about them and sex?"

"Yeah. Fine." Stiles looks over at Derek. "Homework?"

"We can help too," they all say softly.

Derek smiles and nods. "Let me and Stiles work on it for a while, then you can all contribute." He pulls Stiles' book bag onto the bed and pulls out an English book. "This good?" 

Stiles wrinkles his nose. "Yeah, I guess it'll do." He tells Derek what chapter to go to and he reads as Derek holds the book for him. The rest of the pack move off sleepily, heading downstairs and into the bathroom. Isaac frowns as everyone heads off and he crawls onto the bed, curling up around Stiles' lower half, looking at Derek nervously. Derek smiles and reaches over, stroking Isaac's curls. "What's wrong?" Stiles asks, looking down at Isaac.

"I don't wanna burden you with my petty problems."

"Come on, Isaac. We're friends. We're supposed to talk to each other. So talk."

"Allison's just using me to hurt Scott. She wants to get back together with him but when he became an Alpha, she freaked out and called him a monster and came to my bed," Isaac mumbles, burying his face against Stiles' thigh. "But she wants him back now and she thinks sleeping with me will make him jealous and make him beg her back." 

"Fuck," Stiles growls. "That's fucking ridiculous."

Isaac looks up, frowning a little. "You're on my side? I thought you and Allison were friends."

"No. Scott and I are friends. Allison is a part of Scott, or was and now wants to be again." Stiles frowns. "Have you talked to Scott?"

"He doesn't exactly like talking to me."

Stiles looks at Derek. "Can you go get him? I'll talk to Scott for Isaac."

"What happens if Scott goes after Allison?" Isaac asks softly.

"Then they deserve each other," Stiles replies, looking back at Isaac. "You're better than being used by her, Isaac."

"Isaac, baby, John is making some dinner. Let's go eat," Allison says as she steps into the room and smiles.

"I need Isaac's help. Derek needs to go talk to Scott and I need someone to help me with my homework."

"Oh. I can help too."

"No." Stiles glances at Isaac, then at Allison. "It'll help Isaac as well."

"Oh." Allison frowns at Isaac. "Fine." She turns on her heel and heads out.

Stiles looks at Isaac and smiles. "We'll work this out. Derek, can you go get Scott?" 

"Yeah." Derek slides off the bed and heads downstairs. He finds Scott sitting in the living room, staring into space. "Scott? Stiles would like to talk to you."

"Oh?" Scott looks up at him. "About what?"

"Best if you talk to him about it." Derek shrugs and heads into the kitchen as Scott heads upstairs.

John looks over and puts a plate of pizza into Derek's hand. "Eat. After you eat, you can take some food up to Stiles."

Derek nods. "Are you okay with this? Me and him?"

"Would it matter if I wasn't?"

"Yeah." Derek looks down. "I love him, but I'd stay away if you told me to."

John smiles. "I would never tell you to do that. I see how you look at my son, Derek. You take care of him in ways I've never seen anyone care for him."

Derek looks up at him. "I love him. I may kiss him occasionally, but until he's healed I won't try anything with him."

"Good. I know he's legal now, but." John makes a face. "I'm not saying you and him aren't good together, but I don't want to know anything about my son losing his virginity."

Derek smiles a little. "You won't know, unless Stiles tells you. Which is highly likely considering Stiles, but it won't come from me and it won't happen until he's able to at least participate." Derek blushes.

John chuckles. "Good to know. Now, eat your pizza and then go upstairs."

Derek nods and scarfs down several pieces of pizza before he plates up a few slices and carries them upstairs. He stops in the doorway, watching Scott and Isaac curled up at the foot of Stiles' bed while Stiles stares out the window. "Guys," he says softly, "pizza's downstairs."

Isaac nods, face buried against Scott's neck. Scott looks up, hurt evident in his gaze. "I didn't know."

Derek reaches out and rubs Scott's back. "I know you didn't. You're too good-hearted to have let this go on if you'd known." He hands them the plate. "Here. Eat. I'll go get Stiles more and grab more for you guys too." Derek looks at Stiles who's smiling brightly at him. Derek smiles back and heads downstairs, grabbing two of the pizza boxes. He glances at Allison who frowns at him. "Allison, why are you doing this?" 

"Doing what?" 

"Using Isaac to get Scott back."

She pales. "Scott and I are meant to be together, but he doesn't trust me right now."

"Using one of his betas to get him back won't convince him to trust you," Derek replies, shaking his head. "I'm not in charge, but I think you should go. Isaac told Stiles, so Isaac knows what you're doing and he's devastated."

Allison shakes her head. "I'm not going anywhere until Scott tells me to. He's the alpha."

Derek shrugs and heads upstairs. He sets the pizza on Stiles' nightstand. "Allison won't leave until you tell her to, Scott."

Scott scowls. "Isaac, I'll be back." Scott climbs off the bed and heads downstairs. Isaac scoots up and curls up against Stiles. 

Stiles smiles at him, then looks at Derek. "Food, please?" 

"Of course Stiles." Derek pulls out a piece of pizza and feeds it to him. "Is this an okay piece? Do you want a different kind?"

"No. This is good. Next piece, I'll have a different kind."

Derek nods and reaches over with his free hand, stroking Isaac's hair. "You doing okay, Isaac?"

"Yeah. As long as Scott and Allison don't get together."

"I don't think they will," Stiles says, looking at Isaac. "Scott wouldn't do that to one of his pack."

Derek nods. "Stiles is right. Scott values pack above everything. Even above his love for Allison."

A little while later, Scott walks into the room and nudges Derek away, curling up around Stiles. "She's out of the pack. I won't have her using anyone like that, much less Isaac."

Stiles nods, looking down at Scott before he looks up at Derek. "Would you put my arms around these two?"

Derek smiles and leans over them, hooking one of Stiles' arms around Isaac and the other around Scott. "I'm gonna go see if your dad needs any help."

Stiles nods and lays his head back. By the time Derek reaches the door, all three boys have fallen asleep. Derek watches Stiles for a moment, before he heads downstairs.

Another week passes and Derek finds himself heading back to high school. He makes a face as he pulls into Stiles' parking space at the school and looks over at his mate. "So, are you ready for this?" 

"Yeah." Stiles smiles at him. Some of his paralysis has lifted, so Stiles actually has the use of his arms now, he just still needs Derek with him to push him around and lift any of his heavier stuff out of his bag. The teachers all know and while most of them disapprove, thanks to the Americans with Disabilities Act they can't stop Derek from being there.

Derek nods and hops out of the Camaro, walking around the car and lifting Stiles out, settling him in his wheelchair. He puts his backpack over his shoulder and rubs Stiles neck. "Where are we meeting the pack?" 

"By my locker. Then you and I get to go see Mr. Thomas."

Derek nods. "Okay." He pushes Stiles up the ramp and into the school. He flinches a little from the high pitched giggles and gasps and he glances at his own outfit. He's wearing jeans and a white t-shirt. It's nothing special.

Stiles chuckles and turns his head to look at Derek. "You're hot. Like incredibly, irrationally, impossibly hot. You could be wearing a paper bag and you'd still be gorgeous."

Derek raises an eyebrow. "Oh yeah?" 

"Yeah." Stiles smiles. "Come on. Principal's office is that way."

"I know," Derek says softly. 

"Right. You've been here a few times." Stiles licks his lips. "So, are you sure you're okay with this, Derek?" 

"I'm sure." Derek places his hand on Stiles' shoulder. "I want to help you however I'm able to do that." He pushes Stiles towards the principal's office, stepping in and licking his lips when the women in the office let out little whines at his appearance and immediately start fussing with their hair.

Stiles snorts. "Is Mr. Thomas in?" 

Mr. Thomas steps out into the office. "Mr. Stilinski. How are you doing?" 

"Good. Better." Stiles smiles and waves his hand a little. "I have some mobility in my hands."

Derek smiles at how excited Stiles is about it. "He's getting better every day."

Stiles nods. "And now I want to go back to school. I have all my makeup work and I'm ready to take my tests. I just don't know how we're going to go about this. Derek will stand out, but he's mostly my right and left hands."

Mr. Thomas nods. "All of your teachers have been appraised of the situation. As long as Mr. Hale doesn't try to start anything with any of the students, then everything will be fine."

"He won't." Stiles looks up at Derek and smiles. "He's here just to help me, not pick fights with our students."

Mr. Thomas nods. "I understand that. Mr. Hale, you're not to answer any of his questions. You're only there to write for him, not to think for him."

"I wouldn't dream of it. Stiles is smart enough to do it himself, so it's not a problem." Derek rubs Stiles' shoulder. "I do have a question. During gym period, is there anyway he and I could use an empty room? He does need to do physical therapy."

"Actually, Finstock and I have been talking and the physical therapy hours that Mr. Stilinski is doing will qualify as his PE credits. We'll need to monitor it occasionally."

Derek nods. "No problem. Having an audience will be just fine."

Stiles nods as well. "Some of the stuff is awkward, but we're used to having an audience. My dad and some of my friends watch us all the time."

"Okay then. Off to class with you. Mr. Hale, in most classes you'll be given a desk and we've arranged for Stiles to sit next to you, but that you'll be in the desk."

"Okay. Thank you Mr. Thomas." Derek shakes his hand, then pushes Stiles towards his first class. He smiles when Isaac and Scott join him and Stiles, talking about what's going on with some of the other students. Ethan, Danny, Aiden and Lydia join them at Stiles' locker. Then as they're heading into homeroom, Boyd and Erica join them as well. Derek smiles at the pack, leading Stiles to a desk near the front of class. He settles at the desk, making sure Stiles is comfortable next to him and the pack surrounds them.

Derek glances up when the teacher walks in, a beautiful brunette. Stiles makes a snorting noise and Derek looks over at him. "Something wrong?" 

"New homeroom teacher."

"And?" Derek raises an eyebrow. He glances back at the teacher when she starts walking over and leans on the desk. Suddenly it makes sense when she leans on the desk he's sitting in, flashing him her cleavage. Stiles is jealous, because Derek's past history has leaned towards women like this. But he's not interested in the slightest in any woman, much less one of Stiles' teachers. He's only interested in the man next to him.

"You must be Derek Hale. It's quite an honourable thing you're doing, helping one of our poor defenseless students."

Stiles growls a little at that and Derek reaches over, squeezing his shoulder. "Stiles is not exactly a "poor defenseless" anything. I'm honoured that he's allowing me to help him. He's one of my closest friends." He smiles at Stiles in a way that leaves no question as to his feelings for the young man. She pulls back, a disgusted look on her face.

"Oh. You're dating a child?" 

"He's eighteen. And I'm not that much older than he is, so... Yeah."

Stiles frowns at her. "He's here to assist me, not for you to flash your obviously fake tits in his face." 

Derek rubs Stiles' shoulder. "Stiles, calm down. She knows she's in the wrong. I'm not interested in the slightest in a teacher." Derek focuses on Stiles' face. "I only have eyes for you."

Stiles flushes and smiles. "Same here."

Derek keeps rubbing Stiles' shoulder before he turns back to the teacher who is scowling at them. "Stiles is my boyfriend. I'm not interested in you. I never will be. So please, just be the students' teacher."

"How do you think the Sheriff will feel about a twenty-something year old dating his eighteen year old son?" 

"Why don't you ask him?" Stiles smirks and looks at the door. "Hi Dad."

The Sheriff steps into the room and eyes the teacher before he walks over and hands Derek a stack of papers. "Forgot Stiles' homework on the kitchen table." He turns to the teacher. "What my son and his boyfriend get up to is none of your concern. Stiles is an adult and he is, as has been mentioned several times now, eighteen. Since Stiles can't possibly participate if they were to do anything, they're taking it slow. But you know, there's no one better than Derek for my son because no one will protect Stiles the way Derek will."

Stiles looks at Derek and smiles, leaning over and laying his head on Derek's shoulder. "Thanks for bringing my homework, Dad." 

"No problem." The sheriff eyes the teacher again. "Oh, and if I find out you've tried to get the two of them in any trouble, you'll be dealing with me. And trust me, that's something you do not want to do." He turns on his heel and storms out. 

Stiles grins, the rest of the pack chortling. Scott claps Stiles on the shoulder. "Your dad is the coolest, bro."

Stiles nods. "He really is. I love my dad."

Derek snorts and puts the homework in Stiles' backpack and pulls out his laptop. "Here we go. How about you tell me what you want your English paper-- that's due in two days I'll remind you-- to say?"

Stiles sticks his tongue out at Derek and leans his head on his shoulder as the teacher sits at her desk and takes roll. "Okay, so..." Stiles trails off, then reads what they'd written the night before. He starts talking, trying not to go off on tangents because, as they'd discovered the night before, Derek would type down every single word Stiles said.

Derek rests his cheek on top of Stiles' head as he types, smiling a little. By the time homeroom ends, they've got the majority of Stiles' English paper written. Derek packs up their stuff and gets to his feet, grumbling when he gets a little stuck in the desk. "Damn it." 

Stiles chuckles. "Not meant for big, bad, wolves, huh?" 

"Shush, Stiles." Derek grins at him, then raises an eyebrow as Scott hops behind the wheelchair. He smirks at Derek, then takes off, running down the hallway. Derek rolls his eyes, moving slower as the rest of the pack practically skips ahead of him. He smiles at how exuberant they are and he settles into Chemistry, glancing over as Scott skids Stiles to a stop next to him. "Did you have fun?" 

Stiles laughs and nods. "It's all good, Der."

Derek rolls his eyes and looks at Scott. "No more running with him in school. I had to sweet talk two teachers from chasing you and giving you both suspensions." 

"Good thing you're charming," Stiles says smiling still. 

Scott snorts and sits behind Derek. "If he's charming, I'm the queen of England."

Isaac leans over and smirks. "Nice to meet you, highness." 

Stiles laughs, then sobers when the chemistry teacher walks in and scowls at them. Derek glares back at him, daring the man to say anything to Stiles. He sits back, laptop out in front of him and takes notes, glancing over at Stiles to see if he's paying attention. Stiles is, in fact, paying attention and watching Derek's typing. "He said polyatomic, not olyatomic." 

Derek rolls his eyes at the typo but fixes it before he goes back to typing the lecture. He's a good typist, he knows, but it's easier when someone else is talking to just copy their words down. He and Stiles can sit down later and edit out the non-important parts. Derek frowns when he senses someone looking over his shoulder and he's not too surprised to see Isaac and Scott both staring at the computer screen, then writing something in their notebooks. He grins at Stiles as he keeps typing. At least they know that the whole pack will benefit from him being here, if only because they'll likely steal all of Stiles' notes that Derek's typing.

The day drags on for Derek, whose only break is during lunch and he kicks back, watching the pack argue and snark and throw food at each other. He smiles at them, enjoying the sense of family surrounding them. His hand slides down to Stiles' lower back and he leans over, kissing Stiles' neck. "How are you doing?" 

Stiles turns and smiles at him. "Doing good. I'm tired."

"Yeah? You can relax during study hall. It's after lunch, right?"

Stiles nods and takes another bite of his sandwich. "Can we do some rehab stuff during study hall? Just like with my hands and stuff."

Derek nods. "Of course, Stiles."

Stiles grins. "You are so gone over me."

Derek laughs. "Yeah, I am."

The rest of the pack piles on Derek, hugging him. "You guys are so cute and adorable."

Derek rolls his eyes, but hugs everyone back. "Okay. Get off me," he mumbles, pushing them away. "Stiles, you wanna go get started?" 

Stiles nods. "Can you take me to the bathroom first?" 

Derek gets to his feet and pushes Stiles towards the bathroom. The rest of the pack trails after them and Derek frowns. "No. You guys need to hang back. You've got class and not all of you have study hall."

"Besides guys, I'm going to the bathroom, which is messy under the best of circumstances when I can't always feel what's going on. Not to mention, Derek has to get..." Stiles blushes and ducks his head.

Derek rubs a small circle over Stiles' shoulder blade. "It requires being kind of... hands on and quite frankly, none of you need to see that. Actually, scratch that. Stiles doesn't need anyone else seeing that. Bad enough for him that I have to do it and his dad sees it when I'm not able to do it."

Stiles turns his head when Derek's hand rests on his shoulder. He rubs his cheek over Derek's hand and sniffles. "I really have to go, Der."

"Okay. Everyone stays back." Derek helps him into the boys bathroom and into the handicapped stall. He lifts him up, tugging down his pants as Stiles holds onto him, then he sets Stiles on the toilet, holding him in place as Stiles goes. Stiles blushes, as he does every time. "You know this isn't anything to be embarrassed about, Stiles. It's a natural function."

"Don't care. My boyfriend has to hold my dick over the toilet so I don't spray him with my piss." Stiles ducks his head.

"Like I care." Derek lifts Stiles' chin and presses their mouths together lightly. "It doesn't matter to me."

"I peed all over you, Derek. It was gross!" 

"It washes off," Derek reminds him gently. "I'm a wolf, Stiles. I've never been anything else. One of my sisters did it on purpose when we were kids. That was gross." Derek waits until Stiles smiles a little. "I love you and I don't care if you pee on me. It was an accident."

Stiles licks his lips. "Der."

"I'm serious. I love you and I don't care about that. We know how to avoid it now."

"I love you too, Derek." He pulls Derek in and kisses him.

Derek hums happily into his mouth. "Now, lets get you cleaned up and then head to study hall." 

Stiles nods and grabs the handicap bar, gripping it hard as Derek starts to clean him up. "My strength is a little better. I don't feel quite so much like I'm going to fall off the toilet."

"That's good. We'll work on making it so you can hold yourself up the whole time." Derek smiles and finishes cleaning him up. He raises an eyebrow when the muscles in Stiles' thighs twitch. Up until now the muscles have been mostly still. He looks up at Stiles and beams. "Can you feel this?" He pushes his claws out and drags them lightly over Stiles' calves and up until they're dragging lightly over Stiles' thighs. He grins when Stiles jerks. "You felt that?" 

"I felt that!" Stiles grins and throws himself at Derek. "I felt something!" 

Derek stands up, Stiles in his arms. "This is amazing! You felt something!" 

Stiles beams. "When we do rehab during gym, can we work on my legs?" 

"Of course. We'll only do the approved exercises though, nothing else."

"Okay, but when we go to the PT guy, you'll tell them we need more advanced exercises."

"I will. We'll tell them that." Derek grins. "Try to steady yourself on your feet so I can pull up your pants. As much I as am loving the view and the knowledge that you're all over me and nude, this is probably not the best place for this."

Stiles yelps and buries his face against Derek's shoulder. "Pull my pants up."

Derek kisses Stiles' neck and bends a little, pulling up Stiles' pants. He does up the button and the zipper, then settles Stiles in his wheelchair. "Here you go."

"You really liked the view?" 

"I loved the view." Derek grins at him. "When you do get the feeling back in your legs, I will show you just how much I love the view of you nude." 

Stiles blushes and nods. "I can't wait to be able to feel you."

Derek grins. "I am very much looking forward to being able to touch you and have you touching me."

Stiles licks his lips and blushes harder. "I love you, Derek. I love you so much."

Derek grins and squeezes Stiles' hand before he gets behind the wheelchair and stops to wash his hands before they continue on to Stiles' study hall.

At the end of the day, Derek is exhausted and Stiles is sleeping in his wheelchair, his head lolling back. Derek smiles fondly at him as he stops by each of the teachers' classrooms and sets up Stiles test taking the next day. He has several makeup exams that the teachers want him to finish by Friday, so Derek had thought that between the seven classes, they could do two a day Tuesday through Thursday while leaving the final test for Friday. Most of the teachers were quick to agree, though the new Chemistry teacher seems to be as pissy as Harris had been. Derek sighs a little as he wheels Stiles out to the Camaro. He puts the book bag in the back seat along with Stiles' laptop bag, then he lifts Stiles and settles him in the front seat, laying it back so Stiles' neck isn't at such a bad angle. After he loads the wheelchair in the trunk he leans against the car. It is killing him that he can't do more for Stiles-- that he can't make him walk. He knows Stiles hates feeling this helpless and he personally hates that he feels helpless as well.

He drives back to the Stilinski house and is surprised when it feels like coming home. He'd never thought anywhere but Hale House would ever feel like he was truly home, but this house has quickly become his home. He glances up when the front door opens and the sheriff steps onto the porch. "Derek, how'd the first day go?" 

"Pretty good. I have to keep an eye on them when the others push Stiles, but other than that..." He trails off with a sheepish grin. He probably should've never let the others in the pack push Stiles' wheelchair, but they all had such fun-- Stiles had such fun when they'd race down the hallways that he couldn't find a way to say no.

John smirks. "Of course." He walks down and gets the wheelchair out of the trunk, then grabs their bags. "Physical therapy called. The guy who usually does his PT won't be able to make it and they can't find anyone to cover him. So for tonight, Stiles gets to do PT with us."

Derek frowns, even as he's nodding. "Okay. Stiles felt something. Above his knees, but still. His thigh muscles were twitching and I ran my claws over his skin and he felt it."

John smiles brightly. "That's amazing."

Derek nods. "I'm not sure why he's healing as fast as he is."

"Does it really matter? He is healing fast."

"I don't know. I would like to know why, but no. It doesn't matter." Derek smiles back at John. "He's going to be okay."

John nods and hugs Derek briefly. "Our boy is going to be okay."

Derek licks his lips at the hug and nods. "I'm gonna get him out of the car before he starts yelling at me." He opens the passenger door and lifts Stiles out, surprised he's still asleep. "Or not. He's still sleeping. I'll just carry him in, John."

John smiles and nods, watching them walk into the house. He turns his head as the pack pulls up in their various cars. "Kids, Stiles is sleeping."

"Okay. Can we still hang out until he's awake?" Scott asks, tilting his head hopefully. 

John chuckles. "Go on in. Don't make too much noise. Stiles needs as much sleep as he can get."

"Gotcha," they say, heading in. When John finally gets inside, he glances around the living room, surprised to see the kids broken off into different groups, working on homework. He glances over when Derek walks in and smiles at the young man. "How's our boy?" 

"Sleeping. But peacefully for a change," Derek replies, glancing at the pack. "He's okay, you guys. Really."

"We know, but we want to be here for him anyhow," Erica says, shrugging as she goes back to her English paper.

Derek sighs a little and sinks down onto the couch. He looks up when the sheriff presses a beer into his hand. "I can't get drunk."

"Let me have a drinking partner," John says, smiling as he sits in his recliner.

Derek laughs a little. "Okay. I guess I can have a beer or two."

"We'll order pizza in a while," John adds, glancing at the pack who all perk up at that. "And everyone needs to decide now what we're going to have. We all know that Stiles will make me eat some crappy heart healthy pizza, which I will make him share with me."

Derek snorts. "I'll share with you. Stiles can have whatever he wants."

John glares at him. "You make it hard to like you, Derek."

"I know. I suck." Derek smirks and takes a sip of his beer. "I should go check on Stiles."

Scott jumps to his feet. "I'll go." He places his hand on Derek's shoulder. "I..." He sighs, unable to say what he wants. 

Derek reaches up and places his hand over Scott's. "Thanks."

Scott nods and heads upstairs. Derek leans back, closing his eyes.

 

Derek smiles as he watches Stiles take his firsts steps. "You're doing great, Stiles. Keep it up."

Stiles flips him off. It's been a hard three months, but Stiles can finally walk. At least when he's at rehab he can take a few measly steps. He knows it's progress, and great progress at that, but sometimes, he just wishes it were easier than that. He wants to be able to get out and run with his friends. He glances over at Derek and wishes he had more strength in his legs because he knows his lover won't touch him until he can properly walk. That's his prize, Derek has said, for going through with his rehab every day. Stiles has been using his own hands, but it's not the same. He wants Derek. He wants him in every way imaginable. Which is the only reason he works as hard as he does in rehab. He wants to get better so Derek will be with him all the way.

Derek grins at him. "You are doing fantastic."

"Shut. Up." Stiles sticks his tongue out at his boyfriend, but he has to admit, it makes him feel a lot better to have Derek there, cheering him on. He takes another step, grunting when the muscles in his legs give out and he starts to fall. Derek is there in no time and catches him, lifting him with ease.

The therapist watches, her eyes narrowed. She's a werewolf too, so she understands Derek's need to take care of Stiles and has yet to reprimand him. "Okay. Feel like jelly, Stiles?"

Stiles just stares at her for a moment, wondering how much trouble he'd be in if he swore at her. She smirks and looks at Derek. "Get him home, into a nice warm bath and massage his legs down. Stiles, you're doing good. We both know you can go more than twenty steps without collapsing though, so make sure you keep up your exercises."

Stiles rolls his eyes and lets Derek just carry him out to the car. He'd actually walked into the rehab center, showing off for Derek as much as for his therapist. However, now he regrets that decision because he should be saving it for the actual therapy. He sighs a little as Derek settles him into his seat. 

"You okay, Stiles?" Derek strokes his hair as he squats by the seat.

"Tired. Pissed off at myself for showing off before therapy." Stiles looks at him, pouting almost. "Am I ever going to be able to walk for more than five minutes at a time?" 

"Hey, three months ago, the doctors said it'd be a year before you were on your feet. You can do this. I can't think of anyone who could do it better," Derek replies, leaning in and kissing Stiles softly. "And remember, I will always be by your side." 

Stiles smiles. "Let's go home, Der."

Derek nods. "Let's go home."

the end


End file.
